1. Technical Field
This invention relates to apparatus for manipulating the powertrain controls of an automobile.
2. Prior Art
U.S. Pat. No. 2,281,159 to Kliesrath et al discloses a transmission operating mechanism including a vacuum operated motor 20 connected to a lever 26. A vacuum operated motor for the gear shifter is mounted on the dashboard while a vacuum operated motor for the clutch is mounted behind the fire wall.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,713,332 to Herrbrich teaches an automatic manual transmission shifting mechanism including working cylinders 15 and 16 attached to gear shift lever 20 and the cylinder 14 attached to a clutch pedal 19. This system uses a double pneumatic cylinder system on a base frame, the installation of which requires the removal of the driver's seat.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,465,577 issued to Donovan teaches an automatic manual transmission shifter including hydraulic cylinders 76 and 78 attached to column gear shift lever 26 and hydraulic cylinder 34 attached to clutch pedal 16. In this system the hydraulic cylinders for column shifting are mounted on an external support which extends into the vehicle.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,516,287 issued to Masuda et al teaches a servo cylinder 7, lever select cylinder 43 and side shift cylinder 44. The system is designed for use with a dynamometer test platform where the hydraulic cylinders are mounted next to the power train components.
The uncovered prior art patents teach either a pneumatic or hydraulic system for actuation of the automobile control apparatus. None of the uncovered patents teach a control methodology used to perform the shifting of the transmission gears in conjunction with the motion of the clutch and accelerator pedals. This invention overcomes these problems and teaches such a computer control methodology which allows automatic operation of a manual shifting mechanism including gear selection, clutch actuation and accelerator pedal actuation.